Hijabs in Sports: Nike will be Selling a Hijab, Maine School will be Offering Hijabs to their Athletes

By Kelly Frazier --
25 May 2017 --

Global Media Sharing is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Muslim women who had to use ordinary hijabs will finally find a comfortable respite in the Nike Pro Hijab.

At a time when a lot of Muslim women are facing more challenges than ever because of the anti-hijab laws in various countries, Nike is coming out with a new product – the Pro Hijab.[/tweetit] The Pro Hijab will be an excellent solution for Muslim women athletes around the world who have been struggling between their passion for sports and devotion to their religion.

Hijabs in Sports: Nike will be Selling a Hijab, Maine School will be Offering Hijabs to their Athletes[/tweetthis]

The new product has been brought out at a right time, now that a lot of Muslim women, especially from the Middle East, are coming forward in the field of sports and fashion. While Muslims in the fashion world have plenty of options to choose from, sportswomen have been in a dilemma about their options. The ordinary hijabs they otherwise have been using pose multiple problems such as coming off and the need to be tied up again repeatedly, besides the fact they are not comfortable enough to wear while playing. Nike’s Pro Hijab, in the other hand, is made of material specially designed to be breathable and comfortable.

Emirati figure skater Zahra Lari already dons the Pro Hijab according to Nike. Lari herself said she was very happy and even a bit emotional to see Nike has taken the needs of Muslim women into consideration. She revealed that until now she has been using ordinary hijabs of different types, none of which worked for her. The Pro Hijab, on the other, is very comfortable to wear, thanks to its stretchable material and a longer back designed to ensure it will not come out – a problem that female Muslims have been complaining about the most.

Deering High School in Portland, Maine has jumped at the opportunity to create a better culture of inclusion for their female Muslim students. The school has already been offering their female Muslim students sports-friendly hijabs by Minnesota-based company ASIYA. Deering has laid down a very strong example of acceptance and inclusion with their move.

Nike introduced a performance hijab for Muslim women athletes. It's called the "Nike Pro Hijab" pic.twitter.com/fRT3k0YtYE
— kapta bill (@kapta_bill) May 18, 2017

Muslim women have been feeling the inability to connect to the portrayal of women in popular culture due to the lack of hijabis. For example, the lack of a hijabi among the many emoji options prompted a Saudi teen to campaign for its inclusion because she could connect to none of the emojis available.